SUMMARY In two years of trials, roots of ryegrass took up more 32 P‐labelled phosphate than roots of fescue. Application of 672 kg N ha ‐1 increased phosphate absorption compared with application of 112 kg N ha ‐1 . Roots in mineral soil absorbed more phosphate than those in peat soil. In both soils uptake decreased as depth of phosphate injection increased from 5 to 30 cm. An interaction occurred whereby roots in the intermediate depth (10–22‐5 cm) in peat absorbed less phosphate than in mineral soil and this was apparently unrelated to the exchange or sorption properties of the soil.
Summary S.184 white clover was established on an unimproved brown earth hill pasture using both surface seeding techniques and conventional cultivation. Inoculation with selected Rhizobium trifolii improved clover dry-matter production by 0·017 t/ha on the cultivated trial in the establishment year and by 0·13 t/ha in the first harvest year. On the uncultivated site, clover dry-matter production was increased 1·88 t/ha by the best inoculation treatment in the first harvest year and 1·01 t/ha in the second harvest year. Rhizobium strains differed in their ability to promote clover growth. Clover yields were substantially better on the uncultivated than on the cultivated trial. The implications of the results for hill land pasture improvement are discussed.